Communist Party of India (Marxist)

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) is a communist party in India, founded in 1964 as the result of a split within the Communist Party of India. The Communist Party holds Marxist-Leninist views, and many of its leaders were in jail at the time of its formation. The party protested against the rise in Calcutta Tramway prices and the food crisis, and it supported general strikes; a Maoist faction within the CPI(M) would start its own revolution against the Indian government. CPI(M) has its strongest support bases in West Bengal and Tripura in western India and Kerala on the southwestern coast, and it held 9/545 Lok Sabha seats and 8/245 Rajya Sabha seats.